SHEBOYGAN, Wisc. — Call it a lesson learned. Rob McClellan only hopes he gets the chance to use it.

The Butler Country Club pro returned home Sunday night after missing the cut Friday in a bizarre PGA Championship experience.

"Regardless of what happened, I hold no hard feelings toward anybody," McClellan said after a rough second round Friday cost him a chance of making the cut.

"This was an experience I'll never forget. Having the opportunity to go out and hit around with the best golfers in the world? I'll treasure that."

Only one of the 20 club pros in the 156-golfer field — Rob Labritz of Bedford Hills, N.Y. — made the cut and played the entire tournament.

For a good while, it appeared McClellan would join him.

"I was even-par with four holes to go (in the first round) and was feeling great," he said. "Then I bogeyed three holes in a row.

"To go 3-over after the kind of start I had was pretty disappointing Still, I figured 1-over-par would get me to the third round. I had to shoot a 70 (in round two)."

That opportunity never came.

Because of lengthy fog days Thursday and Friday at Whistling Straits, McClellan only had a 15-minute break between finishing his final 11 holes of the opening round Friday and starting his second round the same day.

"My tee time was 1:22," he said. "I grabbed something to eat and drink, found my brother (also his caddy) and headed to the tee.

"I glanced at my cell phone as we left the clubhouse and it was 1:17. I thought I was good."

He wasn't.

When McClellan arrived at the tee, a tournament official informed him he was 38 seconds late, resuting in a two-stroke penalty.

"There's a clock there and he explained that once it hit 1:22 and I hadn't teed off, I was officially late," McClellan said.

"I was shocked. I was embarrassed. It was a stupid thing on my part. I let it get to me mentally."

McClellan double-bogeyed No. 1 to suddenly balloon to 7-over-par for the tournament. He bogeyed No. 3, 6 and 8 on the front nine as well.

At that point, it was time to enjoy the moment.

"That's what my brother (Rich) told me," McClellan said. "He looked at me before we started the back nine and said 'Let's just enjoy this.' And we did."

McClellan regained his form, shooting 1-over-par on the back nine. He finished the tournament 12-over, connecting for four birdies, 19 pars and 12 bogeys.

Fellow club pro Mark Sheftic, of Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, was among the other 18 club pros to miss the cut.

"I'm not going to dwell on the scores that I shot. What I'm going to dwell on is the experience that I gained and that was nice," Sheftic said.

"There was 20 club pros that work very hard doing our job and we don't get to play a lot of golf ... So we have to keep things in perspective."

Rich Steinmetz, club pro at Spring Ford Country Club in Royersford, echoed those sentiments. He played in his second PGA Championship.

"It's great to be here. It's a fun event to be invited to and play in," Steinmetz said.

McClellan had approximately 15 Butler Country Club members follow him around Whistling Straits for two days.

"Yeah, it was cool," he said. "I'd hit a good shot and someome would yell 'Go, Butler!" or Yeah, Rob!' Guys I were playing with kept commenting about it.

"People were rooting for them, too, but not by name. They knew those guys were from my hometown."

McClellan only hopes to give BCC members another chance to follow him around in this event.

"Hey, I'm only 30 and I have an exemption for next year's National Club Pro," he said. "If I finish in the top 20 again, I'm back here again. I hope I get to play in 10 more of these.

"Only next time, I'll get to the tee with a few minures to spare."

In the meantime, it's back to work. McClellan was scheduled to tee off at 9 a.m. today to begin section championship play at Edgewood Country Club.

"No rest for the weary," he said. "But I love it."